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Sunday, September 9, 2012

Opinions and Observations: Ward-Dawson

Three main points summarize Andre Ward's stunning 10th-round TKO victory over Chad Dawson: 1. Dawson couldn't defend against Ward's left hook. 2. Ward had a significant advantage over Dawson on the inside. 3. The move down to 168 lbs. severely affected Dawson's performance.

Ward employed a variety of tactics to land his left hook. In his picture-perfect third-round knockdown, Ward shot a strong straight right hand to the body. Predictably, Dawson dropped his arms to defend against the shot; Ward immediately followed up with a compact, pulverizing left hook that caused Dawson to collapse. In the fourth round, he fired a looping lead left hook from the outside and Dawson tasted the canvas again. Ward also used a lot of quick lateral movement to his left to get outside of Dawson's jab. He then threw his left hook from an angle where Dawson had no defense.

Ward demonstrated a consistent hand speed advantage throughout the fight. Dawson, a strong defensive fighter, is not easy to land on but Ward peppered him with left hooks, straight right hands and uppercuts. Ward used quick lateral and upper body movement as well as feints to find angles for his shots, but he also plain beat Dawson to the punch on several occasions.

Perhaps the nastiest round of the fight was the eighth, where Ward, against the ropes, teed off on Dawson with crunching left and right uppercuts. Dawson was unable to tie up, which is really a credit to Ward's understanding of distance. By this point, Dawson's legs were jelly. He couldn't escape the pocket and Ward moved slightly from side to side to land additional shots.

Ward understood that Dawson needed room to land his punches. By taking the fight in close, through faster hands and superior foot speed, Ward took himself out of danger. Dawson didn't have the wherewithal or composure to fire more uppercuts or body shots. In addition, Ward stayed close but didn't smother himself, which led to additional opportunities to cause damage.

By the time that Ward scored his third knockdown of the fight in the 10th round (from a four-punch combination of straight right hands and left hooks), Dawson had had enough and indicated to ref Steve Smoger that he was finished. The win was not unexpected, but the complete demolishment of Dawson surprised boxing fans around the world.

Dawson's weight drain was a real issue. He had previously faced off against much bigger punchers than Ward in his career: Tomasz Adamek, Glen Johnson and Antonio Tarver to name three. Although Dawson had been hit hard, and even dropped before, against none of those opponents did he ever choose to stop a fight. However, facing Ward, he decided that he couldn't continue.

Additionally, consider that Dawson walked into the ring at 185 lbs. by the time of the fight. Those 17 pounds of rehydration suggest that Dawson had difficulty making weight. (Typically, a fighter rehydrates 8-12 lbs.)

Furthermore, Dawson just didn't have his legs all night. Much of this can be attributed to Ward but a portion also must be allocated to Dawson's problems in making weight. Dawson couldn't get out of the pocket. His lateral movement was far less impressive than it had been against other fighters. He didn't look sharp or crisp with his punches all night.

Dawson went down from very good shots; he also went down because making the weight was a significant burden. His trainer, John Scully, subsequently tweeted on Sunday that Dawson's weight was an issue that he was concerned about as early as a few weeks ago.

But this weight drain is not an excuse for Dawson's performance; it's just a contributing factor. Ward made the fight. He had a higher punch output, he took more risks and he landed the superior shots. Ward may not have faced a fighter who was at 100%, but so what. The tables were turned last year when Ward fought Carl Froch with a broken hand, but he dominated. It's rare when fighters are actually at their best in the ring, but Ward didn't allow Dawson into the bout or to fight at a measured pace. He pressed the action, fired hard shots and scored the victory.

Much was made on the HBO broadcast of Ward's success in taking away Dawson’s jab. This certainly was the case in the fight. Ward did a number of things to negate Dawson's stick. He would skirt to his left, out of range from the jab. He ducked down under Dawson's arms and fired power shots to the body. He also stood on the outside and rushed in from unconventional angles. In short, Dawson likes his pocket neat and tidy. Ward didn’t remain stationary enough for Dawson to hit him and Dawson lacked the mobility to find him.

Ward and his trainer Virgil Hunter should be applauded for their game plan. They agreed on a strategy that used multiple angles and punches to start their attack. This versatility and unpredictability confounded Dawson, who just couldn't find the right style of defense.

However, Dawson had a number of rounds in the middle of the fight to try and make his mark. In rounds five through seven, the action was more measured, with only bursts of sustained activity. Ward was able to win these rounds by having a higher punch output and the better quality shots, but Dawson didn't press his attack. He wasn't willing to take enough chances and throw bombs. Instead, he ate more punches and ineffectually released a few straight lefts and jabs.

Scully implored Dawson to go for the knockout after the eighth round, but Dawson wasn't up for the task. He had been hurt and he wasn't prepared to leave himself more vulnerable by going on the offensive. He would lose soon enough, but the decision not to fire away was a telling one.

Dawson's decision to move down to 168 to take on the best should be applauded; it's downright refreshing. Dawson gave up weight and geography; he ultimately gave up too much. I'm not claiming that he beats Ward at 175, but he would have given a much stronger account of himself at a higher weight than he did on Saturday.

Dawson will now return to the light heavyweight division where he is still the champion. I'm sure after Saturday's performance that there will be no shortage of potential opponents hoping to pounce on wounded prey, such as Tavoris Cloud, Jean Pascal and Nathan Cleverly. I suggest that he takes some time off to regroup. The question for him, as always, will be desire. Does he really want to make another run? Is he truly motivated to do what it takes to beat the best?

After defeating Bernard Hopkins earlier in the year, there was a thought that mentally Dawson was in a very good place in the ring – that he had turned a corner. However, after this weekend's fight, the old questions about his inability to deal with adversity in the ring and his lack of passion still apply to him. The answer won't be to fire another trainer. He needs to look within.

Ward has cleaned out the super middleweight division and defeated the best fighter at light heavyweight. Honestly, I don't see anyone beating him from 168-175. Some names that could make sense for me would be Sergio Martinez, Gennady Golovkin, Andre Dirrell, Jean Pascal or Tavoris Cloud. All of these opponents provide different challenges but make no mistake; Ward would be a heavy favorite against every one of them. Similar to the bulk of Hopkins' run at middleweight or the Klitschkos' current dominance at heavyweight, Ward will just have to continue to beat the next guy, whoever that may be. In time, a suitable opponent will present itself, but for now, Ward needs to keep on keepin' on. He's already a dominant fighter – and he continues to get better! This sport could be his in a few years.